This app lets you manage and listen to your podcast subscriptions from the cloud, so you do not have to download the episodes to get going. While iTunes does a good job of streaming podcasts, you will need a couple more clicks to listen to the one you like. But with Flapcast, all you need to do is click the play button to listen to the episode.

Flapcast’s quick search engine also lets you add new shows easily. Just search by keyword or view the top episodes and podcasts. This app is useful for anyone who needs to listen to podcast episodes straight from the browser.

Features:

• Add and manage podcasts.
• Search by keyword or view top episodes and top podcasts.
• Free; quick sign up.
• Needs Flash to completely work.
• Similar Tools: Stitcher 

Check out Flapcast @ @ http://flapcast.com

Vocalyse is an excellent online utility which helps you listen to your favorite blog or website even if you are busy with your office work or any other project in real time. The web service makes managing playlists easy and simple as websites are categorized according to the market they cover e.g Technology, Business and more.

To create your own custom playlist, just click on My Playlists, select the category and it will show you all the blogs listed under that category. Just add the news source you want to listen to and click on the Save Favorites button. All you then have to do is click on the Listen button to listen to real time news from your favorites. If you want, you can sign up for an account so you can manage and save your playlists online and access them from any computer or mobile device.

Features

• Free and easy to use.
• Listen to news in real time.
• Manage playlists and access them anywhere.
• Available on iOS and Android devices.
• Similar tools: BlogRadio and SpokenText.

Check out Vocalyze @ www.vocalyze.com (By Hammad from TechnicallyDigital)

BBC News Alarm a web app for Google Chrome available from the Chrome Web Store. After installation the app lets you set up an alarm time. The time displayed by the app is your system time. At the set time, the BBC news podcast is played. You wake up to the day’s global news thereby saving you time to separately turn on the television.

Features:

• A user-friendly web service.
• Lets you set an alarm to wake up.
• Plays the BBC global news podcast at the set alarm time.
• Uses your system time.
• Similar tools: PodcastAlarm, TimerTab and Remember It App.
• Also read related article: Best Online Alarm Clocks For Naps At Work.

Check out BBC News Alarm @ chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/kgfldkgcfjkclomnlifbhgeleheokdkl?hl=en-US# (via LifeHacker) (by MOin from ThumbPress)

Podcast Alarm is a free and very simple to use web service. The app detects your system time and lets you set up an alarm accordingly. You then specify the URL of a podcast. This podcast is played at the time the alarm is supposed to ring. A direct URL is also generated for your settings; you can bookmark this URL and visit it each time to have the alarm preset and the podcast URL pre-entered.

Features:

• A user-friendly web service.
• Lets you setup an alarm time.
• Detects your system time.
• Plays your specified podcast at set time.
• Offers option to save settings via direct URL.
• Similar tools: TimerTab, Sleep Cycle, MetaClock, MusicAlarmClock, OnlineVideoClock, OnlineClock, KukuKlok and AlarmTube.
• Also read related article: Best Online Alarm Clocks For Naps At Work.

Check out Podcast Alarm @ www.podcastalarm.com (by MOin from ThumbPress)

Stories can also be searched via keywords or address, and can be filtered using categories such as arts, politics, nature and more. Users can rate each story, post comments and share it via a permanent URL. The Broadcastr service is available online as well as through the free iPhone app. Stories can also be added to a playlist for continuous listening. You can also follow users like Twitter to get continuous updates and save your favorite recordings by signing up for a free account.

Features:

• Audio stories based on location.
• Listen, comment and rate the stories.
• Find by category, keyword or address.
• Available on the web or via iPhone.
• No registration required.

Visit Broadcastr @ www.beta.broadcastr.com [Via VentureBeat]

You can add up to 18 audio files to your recording where you can also set the volume for each clip and choose where it should come up . For example, if you want to add a siren sound to your podcast, just load the sound effect, adjust the volume, then set the start time.

Soundboard is a small 47KB download and is available in compact mode for those with less screen space. You can also load different color schemes to the app, which is important if you are working with multiple projects. Sounds can be activated with a keyboard shortcut so you can quickly input the effect that you want.

Features:

• Add sound effects to podcasts.
• Free to download and use.
• Loop clips.
• Add sound anywhere in your recording.
• Adjust volume for each clip.
• Add up to 18 different audio clips.

Check out Soundboard @ www.zhornsoftware.co.uk/soundboard/index.html

The beauty of Supertintin is its ease of use. It captures the native format of the stream to prevent data loss. It is also more reliable than screen-capture tools because it records the stream directly.

To start a recording, you only need to click the record button during the conversation. Unlike other addons, Supertintin can also capture calls and voicemails. It can also record video conferences without any additional setup.

This tool allows you to record video in PIP mode, side-by-side, remote-only, and local-only. Although it currently supports only Skype and MSN, future releases will include compatibility with Yahoo Messenger, AIM, Paltalk, Crazyfrog and more.

Supertintin offers both a free and paid version. The free version gives you the complete feature-set with a 5-minute recording limit, while the paid version gives you unlimited recording.

Supertintin is a great app for anyone who need to record their IM conversations – especially useful for remote teams and companies who need to keep track of everything that is said in meetings.

Features:

• Lightweight call recorder for Skype and MSN.
• Free and paid options available.
• Record audio and video in one click.
• Multiple recording modes include PIP, side-by-side, remote-only, and local only.
• Records directly from the stream for high quality output.
• Nice podcasting alternative.

Check out Supertintin @ www.supertintin.com

There are two ways by which you can share a recording to your Audioboo account: by its mobile application or through its website. Its mobile app supports iPhone and Android phones and they are also developing support for Blackberry, Nokia, and Windows Mobile as well.

Audioboo also has a social networking component as you can explore other people’s profiles, follow them, and listen to their recordings. You can also download a podcast of their recordings via iTunes or through RSS feeds.

Features:

• Easily share your audio recordings online.
• Attach a picture, tags, title, and description on the audio recording.
• Record audio using your iPhone and Android phone using the mobile app.
• Record or upload audio though the web.
• 5 minute limit on a single recording and 50MB limit on uploads.
• Lets you record anonymously on the mobile app.
• Follow other people’s accounts.
• Link your account to other social networks.
• Subscribe to other people’s recordings via iTunes or RSS feeds.
• Similar Tools: Chirbit, Vocaroo and RadioTime.

Check out Audioboo @ www.audioboo.fm

As is the case with any site like this, some of the content is legal and some are questionable. But if you’re a fan of world music you’ll find no shortage of content to pick from here: in my perusal I found several broadcasters showing off the flavor of their home countries to an international audience. The site’s worth checking out for that alone.

Features

• Broadcast audio to the world, instantly.
• Browse a variety of user-created radio stations.
• Discover music from around the world.

Check out Spreaker @ www.spreaker.com

Features:

• Download free online audio books in MP3 format.
• Download as many book as you like.
• Browse books and listen online.
• Free and no registration.
• Paid account that provides Ziped downloadss also available.
• Similar sites: NewFiction, WellToldTales, PodioBooks and LibriVox.

Check out ThoughtAudio @ www.thoughtaudio.com